The bite-sized Sonor AQ2 Maple Martini is the perfect jazz, dance, and travel kit — and more than that, it's a ton of fun to play. The 14" kick is beautifully round and resonant, toms are tight and responsive, and the steel snare is crisp and dry as a bone. This is thanks to the Maple Martini's 7-ply maple construction and Sonor's more than 140 years of shell-building expertise. A welcomed addition to the AQ2 series is Sonor's SmartMount tom-mounting system, which avoids unnecessary drilling and metal-on-shell contact for greater resonance and sustain. Redesigned die-cast lugs are tour safe and tuning sound.
Beyond portability, one of the AQ2 Maple Martini's strongest suits is that its kick drum won't get in the way of your bass player — making it a great addition to an organ trio or small combo. With its stock head, the 14" bass drum is full and resonant. But cutting a port hole in the front reveals a quick, punchy tone that, with a close mic, makes a passable rock kick.